how to paint tile floors – a tutorial

Okay! How many of you out there have a room in your house with hideously unattractive floors? Sadly, I have a couple of them. Here’s number one on The World’s Fugliest Floors list.

A couple weeks ago, I finally decided I had had enough of the “life sucking” laundry room floors and I decided that I was going to do something about it. I considered my options.

Option 1- Actually try cleaning it…like really cleaning it, with a pressure washer and the works. Yuck! Seems like a lot of work and the floors would still be the same drab grey color…just a little cleaner {well, a lot cleaner}.

Option 2- Rip out the tile and replace it with something uber attractive {the David Beckham of all tiles is what I’m talking about}. I liked this option, but since I would most likely be going solo on this little project, I didn’t really think my delicate hands and back would much appreciate all of the manual labor. Plus, this option would most likely make a significant dent in the ole pocket book.

I had never painted over tile before, so right off the bat, I did a little research. I knew that regular latex paint would not stand up to the high traffic. So my thoughts turned to epoxy based paint…you know the stuff you use to coat garage floors?

Before you can start this project, it is important to get the work surface as clean and grime-free as possible. Then it needs to dry thoroughly.

Once this is done, you need to prep the floors by applying an appropriate primer. There are several types of primers on the market, but the lovely paint guy at “the depot” said this one would do the job.

I applied one coat

and after about an hour it was dry enough for me to apply a second coat.

{This is a fairly quick drying primer. It says right on the back that it should be dry enough for light traffic in about an hour, but I would just make sure that the surface is in fact dry before walking around on it. Just sayin’.}

After the second coat of primer was dry, I applied my first coat of paint.

I applied two coats of this base paint.

I let the floors cure for several days before starting the next step…

taping

Honestly, the hardest part about the taping was coming up with a design. I spent a lot of time pondering the right pattern: chevron stripe, basic stripe, argyle. I finally settled on a “v” pattern that I just sort of came up with.

I measured out the center of the floor and taped a large “X”.

From there I simply began taping “V’s” in each of the four sections of the “X”.

I removed every other “v” to reveal a space inbetween.

{It goes against all I believe to be wasteful, so I reused the pieces of tape I removed from the inbetween spaces in order to cut down on tape usage}

Here it is…several roles of tape later. But isn’t she gorge? And she’s not even done yet.

For the second color, I chose a greyish-blue color…I believe it was called FOG.

erika
DIY Contributor
I am obsessed with interior design, thrifting and diy anything. I love the name brand look without the name brand price and I’m always on a quest for my next great knock off project. My style is an eclectic mix of... [Read more]

I didn NOT paint under the washer and dryer. But, that’s only because it would have been nearly impossible to do both areas {the walking area and the washer dryer area} at the same time. So, I opted to do the area you most see first. I may {or may not} go back and paint under the appliances. You don’t really see it, so I’m not too worried about it.

Sorry, I just replied under someone elses comment. My bad. Lexi, I don’t see why this process wouldn’t work on counter tile. If it’s durable enough for cars to drive on it, I would hope it would be durable enough for eight kiddos. I say do it.

Hi Lexi. You know, I have never personally painted counter tile, but I don’t see why this process couldn’t work as well on counters as it does on floors. The paint I used is supposed to stand up to automobiles, I would hope it could stand up to eight kiddos. My opinion…give her a go.

It would seem that this method could be used on all tile, however i dont know that it would be appropriate for countertops Where eating And food Prep take place. That would be a question for thr professionals. I’ve seen at westland hardware a DIY kit to revamp countertops. Worth looking into, it was more than what she spent on this floor but a lot less than brand new countertops and it looked like something you could complete in a weekend.

Hi, I love how this turned out! We are thinking of doing something similar in our kitchen. Do you think this would stand up to heavy traffic? How does yours look now? Is it easier to clean? The previous owners of our house never sealed the kitchen tile and it is always disgusting. Thanks for any advice you can provide!
Casey

Hi Casey. Okay, so to answer your first question, yes. I think the epoxy would stand up to kitchen traffic. It’s held up surprisingly well in my laundry room. However, the one thing that I’ve noticed about the floor now that the fam has had a few months to put it to the test, is that there are some scuff marks on it that I haven’t been able to remove with mopping. That might be something you want to take into consideration when deciding if it is a good option for your kitchen. I wasn’t too worried about it because the floors are in my laundry/mud room and not many people, other than my family, use it or see it. The kitchen is another story because it is the heart of the home. You may find that your slightly scuffed up, painted tile bothers you just as much as your unsealed, dirty tile. I guess you will just need to weigh the pros and cons of each. I hope this helps. Feel free to contact me with any further questions.

Thanks for your candor, Erika. I REALLY hate the dirty floor so I will probably try to paint it and see how that goes. Maybe I will try a slightly darker base color to hide potential scuff marks. My next challenge will be finding all low VOC paints I can use since my kids and I are all extremely chemical-sensitive. We usually have to plan any DIY projects on a day when the kids are at school and then leave for the weekend so it can air out. Life is crazy. :) Thanks again!

Paint bleeding under tape almost always happens because of capilary action of any small openings drawing the paint in. What you can do to still get a perfect finish is to do a first coat with the colour you want under the tape (white in your case), this will fill up all the small openings preventing subsequent coats from bleeding. The bleeding from the first coat won’t matter because it was using the background colour. Works every time :)

Hi Johanna! You know, personally, I would be hesitant to paint over vinyl simply because I think this epoxy paint is meant to be applied over hard surfaces like concrete or tile. I suppose you could always try, but honestly, I don’t know how well the paint would stand up to traffic. If you do end up trying, I’d love to know how it turns out for future reference. Good Luck!

Hi Ericka,
While researching for possible methods to tackle ugly blue tiles in my small mudroom, I came across your tutorial. It seems like something I can handle.(famous last words!) May I ask how your tiles have held up? Would you still recommend the same products you used? My mudroom is not a high traffic area….no children or dogs running through!
Many thanks,
Linda

Hi Linda. Surprisingly, the paint has help up very well. I haven’t noticed any chipping at all. The only complaint I would have is that I am beginning to notice a bit of a high traffic wear on the paint. What I mean by that is that down the center of my mud room, the paint is beginning to look a little more worn and maybe even a little dirtier than the paint down the side. It isn’t so noticeable, however, that it looks horrible. I would definately use these products again if the need arose.

Hi Erika!
I came accross this site in a google search and it was exactly what I was looking for! I am on a tight budget so can’t afford to replace the tile. I am planning on painted tile in my guest bathroom. So my question is, do you find the floor slippery at all after painting it? I of course will have rugs, but wanted to see how slippery it’d be especially in a bathroom?

Ericka, you might want to try the magic eraser pads to remove the scuff marks. I have found the Walmart brand works just as well as the more expensive brand name. Also, were there major fumes from the epoxy paint?
Thank you.

Hi Mariel. Sorry I’m so late replying. If you haven’t painted your tiles already, I would probably ask someone at your local paint/home improvement store if this kind of paint is resistant to high moisture and humidity. Honestly, I wouldn’t know how well it would hold up in a shower. But, I’d be happy to know if you find anything out.

Hi Erika! I love what you did with your floor. How is it holding up? I have white tile throught my kitchen laundry room and back bathroom. I hate it! It always looks dirty no matter how many times a day clean it. I wanted to paint every other tile in my kitchen black. Do you think your process will work? Ooh and maybe I can do the bathroom too. Love ur ideas thanx!

Okay, first off, I love the idea of a checkerboard pattern. Secondly, my tile has held up surprisingly well. My only complaint truthfully, is that you can kinda notice a bit of dulling of the paint where the bulk of the floor traffic takes place. I think it may just be the nature of the paint. But, for me, it still looks better than the hideous, grey tile I had before. If it were me, I’d say go for it.

The paint itself is very durable and has held up very well. The only thing I have noticed is that there is a slight high traffic pattern on the floor where everyone tends to walk. I mopped the floor with a steam mop and it seemed to erase a bit of it. But, even with this little issue, I still much prefer my painted tile to the original tile, for sure.

I have been looking for ways to update our horrible bathroom on a budget and came across this – wonderful! Can I ask one question? Do you wear shoes in your house? We take our shoes off at the door and I am wondering if that would maybe have contributed to the slight wear that you’re having with the paint.

Hello :) fantastic job, can only hope mine will look as good! was wondering if it’s not too much trouble whether you could post a photo a year down the track with the dulling you were mentioning – might help to decide if I go for it or not. The tiles I have are not great but are not awful either so would hate to paint them and wish I hadn’t!

Thank you! I picked you first when I Googled “how to paint tile”. Glad I did! Only allowable choice for my budget and is a totalDo It Myself. Starting with a small entry area. No designs..just want v a deeper richer look over the cream. My challenge is that it flows into an adjoining room and that is a much larger painting project. Entry doors are smack in the center of a line of tile. Darn! Maybe I will start with a bathroom. Same tile. Of course this will lead to an entire bathroom redo. Bring it on!

Pretty section of content. I just stumbled upon your blog and in accession capital to assert that I
get actually enjoyed account your blog posts. Anyway I’ll be subscribing to your feeds and even I achievement you access consistently
fast.

Is it possible to do this with wall tiles? Like the ones in my kitchen? I bought a house but I hate the tiles in the kitchen and will be awesome if I could change the color instead of having to change all the tiles for new ones.

Great weblog right here! Additionally your web site rather a lot
uup fast! What web host are you the use of? Can I am getting your associate hyperlink for your host?
I desire my web site loadd up as quickly as yours lol

Woah! I’m really digging the template/theme of this site.
It’s simple, yyet effective. A lot of times it’s challenging to
get that “perfect balance” between user
friendliness and visual appeal. I must say that you’ve done a superb jjob with this.
Also, the blog loads super quick for me on Internet explorer.

Hi! I just wanted to ask if you ever have any problems with hackers?
My last blog (wordpress) was hacked and I ended up losing
several weeks of hard work due to no backup.
Do you have any methods to prevent hackers?

Hi there very nice blog!! Man .. Excellent ..
Amazing .. I will bookmark your blog and take the feeds also?
I am glad to search out a lot of useful information here in the submit,
we’d like develop extra strategies on this regard, thanks for sharing.
. . . . .

Hi, I have a couple questions. Love your floor by the way. I would love to do this in my daughters bathroom. How has it stood up to water and is your floor a textured faux stone ceramic tile? It looks just like mine but a different color. Thanks for any info.

How is the paint holding up on the tile floor now? We have been thinking about painting our floors, but someone at a paint store strongly advised us not to try it. Could you offer some advice? Thank you!

Thanks for this I am about to do my lounge floor… was going to do the floor plain and get a geometric rug. But was looking for a way / texture to hide imperfections, now I think i will pattern the floor and get a plain rug…. maybe. Also planning to leave big furniture as too be and heavy to move! Thank you

[…] there is no shortage on tutorials on how to paint cabinetry, replace or paint countertops and flooring. Seriously there are some very talented people offering some great resources. However, keep in mind […]

Sponsors

Featured

I find in life, it is often too easy to nit pick ourselves…to think of the bad, notice the bad – not the good. We don’t often praise ourselves or our accomplishments. I have been struggling with that lately. I have been picking myself apart from looks, to clothes, to decision, you name it I [Read More]